A day in the life…

There is an error in this page. I can’t change the font color. Ah well.

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God makes such wonders.

Yesterday I received a call from a friend. She said someone called her up and informed her of a lost phone that they found.

It was my SO’s cellphone.

He lost it almost three months ago. That day onwards, we tried so hard to locate it, we dialed its number how many times a day, until the automated voice on the other line told us that the number was out of reach. From then on, we had lost all hope of finding it.

What happened yesterday was a miracle.

My SO was out, so I called up the number our friend gave us. I got to talk to the guy who had the cellphone. He sounded like a family man. He didn’t sound pretentious or suspicious or anything. He told us where he lived and gave some directions on how to go there. During our conversation, I was a bit anxious because at the back of my mind, I was thinking of what to give in return so we could get the phone back. I asked him and all he said was to give him proof that the phone was my SO’s.

Accompanied by our officemate, we went to his place at about past 7PM. He and his neighbors expected our arrival. My SO got down to meet the person who found his phone. They went inside his house while I waited in the car and Ronnie mingled with some of the neighbors. After a while my SO got his phone back. We thanked them and went off.

In the car, Ronnie recounted the chat he had with the neighbors. They said the man who found our phone was really kind. When he found the phone, a lot of people declared interest of having it, buying it, or even selling it, but he decided to return it to its rightful owner. Gio said that there were actually three of them who found it. They found it the day before yesterday, when they were changing the seat covers. One of them wanted to sell it and then share the earnings equally among themselves. But the two, who were I think members of Couples for Christ in their district, decided otherwise and contacted our friend, informing her that they found the phone. What was more amazing was the fact that they did not expect anything in return for their kindness. What they only wanted was friendship, and that their meeting would not end that night.

For a skeptic, this would be a very unlikely scenario. But God makes little miracles everyday. And yesterday, we felt lucky to have experienced this miracle. Preachy? Maybe. But believe me, it’s something you would want to have. Makes you think that the world still has some goodness and beauty to offer.

I don’t know if this will be read by the persons who found the phone, but nevertheless here’s our message.

Para kina Mang Joel and Mang Noel ng San Juan,

Sa ngalan po ng may-ari ng teleponong nakita ninyo sa inyong sasakyan, marami pong salamat hindi lang po dahil sa ibinalik ninyo sa amin ang isang bagay na nawala, kundi dahil rin po sa magandang aral na ibinahagi ninyo sa amin: na ang tunay na kabaitan at katapatan ay walang hinihinging kapalit, at mayroon pa pong mga mababait na taong katulad ninyo sa ganitong panahon. Ibinalik n’yo po sa amin ang pagtiwala sa aming kapwa. At kahit po hindi mailalathala ang kabayanihan ninyo sa mga dyaryo o maipapalabas sa TV, lubos kaming nagpapasalamat sa inyong ginawa. Hindi po namin alam kung paano po kayo mapapasalamatan talaga. Pero alam po namin na dahil sa inyong ginawa ay lalo pa po kayong bibiyayaan ni Lord. Ipagdarasal po namin kayo at ang inyong mga mahal sa buhay. Maraming salamat po ulit. God bless po.:D

Kindness is free. But its rewards are very fulfilling.

It’s been a while since I’ve written something here. Recently I’ve been having trouble actually expressing myself through words. I dunno, everything’s been bottling up inside lately. It isn’t getting better as of this writing. But I just had the urge. So sue me for a really senseless entry.

Besides, I don’t really care who reads this shit. If you’re reading it and have the intention of finishing it, thanks. If not, well thanks anyway for peeking. If you’re not reading this, then I don’t have any message for you. You ain’t reading this anyway. So what’s the point?

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Yesterday, my boss and I were talking about relationships and fears of rejection.

Not just romantic relationships, but also business relationships, friendships and what have you.

My boss has this weird kind of charm that he uses to people, especially to those he just met. Whether they’re wives of friends, new clients, bosses of clients or whoever. Most of the time it works, but there are times when it just does not, and those people end up hating him to high heavens.

I asked him about this, and whether he was afraid that there would be times he would be "rejected" by some (which actually happened, by the way, a few years ago).

He had a nice answer. He said that at his age, he has already met the people who matter. And even though they are just a few, so few that you can count them with one hand, they are the ones who will forever stick with you. And even though he would eventually meet more people who would probably find his jokes and hirits kinda off, he’d have people who like him no matter what. And these are the people he had been friends with since, what, grade school?

Lesson learned: Rejections are a part of life. You can’t please everyone, you can’t be friends with everyone in the planet. You might not have 400 friends or more than 2 accounts in Friendster, but as long as you have that precious few who know you in and out, who love you for what you are, and who would stick with you through everything, that’s all that’s important. Treasure that few who matter.

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I’m upset about the fact that I "lost" a book. To put it more bluntly, someone borrowed it and until now hasn’t returned it. I’ve asked everyone in the office, and even those who have left, but all claim that they haven’t borrowed it.

Whoever has my signed Smoke and Mirrors book, take care of it. It means more than your life. If you plan to sell it, remember that it has more value than before (it’s signed, for crying out loud), so charge more than the suggested retail price.

If you want to return it but are too shy to return it personally, just leave it on my office desk shelf when I’m not around. If I find it back on my shelf, fine. I won’t ask who, why, when or how. I would just telepathically say "thank you, bastard."

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Now for a lighter note, as I rode the FX to the office, I heard the MLTR song, "That’s Why You Go Away." I know it’s weird, but it brings back happy memories.

"Pwede naman natin nakawin ang sandali…" (SFX: music up: I won’t forget…)

Almanz sure has his way of brightening up our day. From here to heaven, thanks.

I must say, it’s better than the mix tape Sunday.

Since Tuesday last week, I had been in a rollercoaster of emotions. I felt too fragile that I easily break down. Maybe because it had something to do with the loss of a friend.

I was very much affected, yes, because he kept our hopes high. He made us look forward to something, but that something was not meant to be. Yes, I was really upset — sad and angry at the same time — because everything came crashing down in an instant.

That was why Friday evening, I was getting ready to cry my heart out. We went to Almanz’s wake in Bulacan. We met his mom (such a brave woman) and went to the living room where he was. At first, I didn’t want to look at him because I couldn’t and I was afraid I’d cry again. But when I got to look at him, seeing him in his coffin, I felt… light. He looked peaceful, he didn’t look like he was in pain or anything. I just shed a tear or two, as I remembered his promise of coming with us this summer. And believe me, I was waiting for me to really burst out crying. But no, instead I felt like smiling. The feelings I had since Tuesday seemed to have evaporated.

I told my sister about this the next morning. She said, "Baka na-comfort ka niya noon." Maybe, because I remember Almanz’s mom telling us that when they were having mass at home, her inaanak, who had a third eye, saw him there, smiling. Maybe he did make me feel okay when I was there. Maybe he wanted me to be happy for him because he’s in a happier place.

I still miss him, we all miss him. There are times I feel sad because we won’t be seeing him again, we won’t be hearing his jokes and his laughter. But I guess he’s doing great there in heaven. Like what Fluxx said, "Nakakapag-tumbling na yun ngayon sa langit." He probably is making all the angels there laugh their hearts out with his wit and his jokes.

I told his mom that night that Almanz promised he’d go with us on our summer vacation. She told us that maybe he will. Hmm… why not?

Wag ka lang manakot, please.